You either love them, or you hate them! Red beets, people tend to have strong opinions about beets. They have a distinct, earthy flavor with a dense consistency. Their bright color is powerfully staining and will leave ruby splashes on your clothes and skin! If you’re in without a grimace for the first part of the equation, that is, you don’t care about the red mess that beets inevitably create, then this is just another recipe you’ll enjoy often.

However, if you dislike beets, this recipe may just change your mind. At least we hope you’ll try it: After all, beets are so good for you!

Beets are a root vegetable low in fat, having about 37 calories in ½ cup serving, when boiled. Although they have only 1 gram of protein and 2 grams of fiber, the benefits of fiber come from their array of vitamins and minerals. Red beets are a good source of folate, delivering close to 17% of your daily recommended intake in ½ cup. They also contain other B vitamins such as niacin, thiamin, pyridoxine, riboflavin, as well as vitamins A and C.

Beets also are a superior brain food due to their manganese content. Just one portion provides 14 percent of your daily manganese. This aids your body in hormone production, and it is essential for nerve and brain functions. Some other minerals in beets include potassium, magnesium, calcium, iron, phosphorus, zinc, copper, and selenium.

As far as the vegetable’s culinary attributes are concerned, beets represent an efficient way to naturally color baked goods. The famous Red Velvet Cake can derive a beautiful rich red from just a few drops of concentrated beet juice, instead of artificial red food coloring. Since beets are a root vegetable made up mostly of carbohydrates, similar to potatoes, they can at times be used interchangeably in some recipes.

In the recipe below, we introduced beets into a classic hummus recipe for a couple of reasons. Beets will bring the total caloric content of hummus down significantly since they have fewer calories than chickpeas. They will also add to the traditionally smooth texture of hummus, bringing a more silken texture to the final product. As for flavor, the lemon and tahini are the main taste enhancers in the recipe, but you will notice a new and refreshing earthy— not to mention—savory undertone emerging from the beets. Most importantly, beets will turn your beige hummus vibrant red! It makes for an elegant appetizer for parties and pairs well with blue chips, when perhaps garnished with a sprig of basil, as you see in our accompanying photo.

There are quite a few variations of hummus out there these days. We would love to hear about your favorites. Comment below with your version, and inspire our next creation!

Beet Hummus

1 can of garbanzo beans (drained, rinsed)

2 small beets

¼ cup of Once Again Tahini

3 cloves of garlic

3 tablespoons of lemon juice

1 teaspoon of salt

3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

First wrap each beet in foil, and bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for about 1 hour, or until tender when pierced with a fork. Remove beets from the oven, and let them cool completely. In a food processor, combine garbanzo beans, beets, Once Again Tahini, garlic, salt, and lemon juice. To complete the batch, slowly pour in olive oil until a desired consistency in obtained, as you continue to pulse the mixture. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator for up to 7 days.

Watch how you can make it in minutes:

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The combination of pumpkin and peanut butter is not an obvious one, such as pumpkin and pecans — or peanut butter and jelly. However, if you dare to think outside old lines and combine these two flavors, you won’t be disappointed. We have many times before in other recipes, but usually receive comments back from reluctant followers saying they just couldn’t see how it would work out and chose to either substitute Once Again Cashew Butter, almond butter, or just skip it altogether—How sad! But we are here to give you one more reason to try this! Leave your fears at the door, and dive into this powerful combo, and we promise you will not regret it.

Our pumpkin croissants can be whipped up in a matter of minutes using store-bought croissant dough. You may choose to make your own of course, but when shortcuts exist that do not sacrifice nutrient value or taste, we encourage their use in our kitchen. After all, many people give up, after gazing over hundreds of recipes, and move on, due to a long ingredient list with complicated directions.

But a lack of time should not limit your making these mouth-watering autumn treats!

And please remember, we enjoy new tips, tricks and recipes as well, so if you have a good one for creative croissant dough to share, please do so in the comments’ section below.

You will bake these croissants according to directions using the store-bought dough, or you can substitute your homemade, from scratch recipe, and proceed to bake these according to that one.

Now, when purchasing refrigerated dough, we recommend looking for ones with the shortest list of ingredients and minimally added preservatives. Here at Once Again, we take a serious vow: Most of our jars of nut butters contain just one or two ingredients.

As a guide, always look for nut butter that has no wheat flour, water, and not too much sugar, salt, or oil!

Now let’s leap onward to the best part, the filling for these croissants. Pumpkin puree is just plain pumpkin; it contains some natural sugar but not enough to make it sweet. Pumpkin is rich in water and has no fat. Peanut butter complements pumpkin by adding natural sweetness from the peanuts and healthy fat. A small amount of maple syrup will sweeten the batch when enhanced by pumpkin spice. The four ingredients come together perfectly to make up the filling for these croissants. Then, as you can watch in our short video, it’s just a matter of rolling up the crescents and baking! The aroma from your oven as they bake will be irresistible.

Let us know your favorite way to enjoy them in the comments below, perhaps with coffee or tea?

In a medium bowl, add pumpkin puree, peanut butter, maple syrup, and pumpkin spice. Mix well, and then add about one tablespoon to open triangle shaped croissant dough, and then roll into a crescent shape. Place each crescent in a baking pan with edges down to ensure proper baking. Store in airtight container for up to 3 days. Best enjoyed fresh out of the oven! Makes about 8 croissants.

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Recent food news tells us that this year’s pumpkin craze is at a lower rate compared to last few culinary cycles. Currently, industry is churning out a few thousand different products with fall-time limited production of myriad pumpkin-flavored yummies. From the most commonly accepted ones, including pumpkin-spiced coffees and cookies to the most bizarre examples, as well, to say that they abound is quite the understatement! A quick search on Google yielded some strange examples of wannabe delights: pumpkin-spiced pizza, pumpkin potato chips, and pumpkin pasta sauce.

However, pumpkin has competition in the fall flavor line-up this year! It seems maple syrup could be the next food to make a come-back. Maple syrup is nothing new: We have enjoyed it for years as part of our breakfast foods, and as a powerful sweetener in baking recipes. It has countless uses.

Of course, pumpkin and maple syrup team up well in innumerable recipes!

So, it seems like a good time to review the nutritional lore of maple syrup and why it is an ingredient worth exploring, not only for its uniquely sweet taste but also, because of its vast nutritional implications.

Just as a side note though, we aren’t dampening our enthusiasm for pumpkin. So, don’t get that impression. Pumpkin still has a lot to give, and we are willing to continue to explore the versatility of this nutrient-rich vegetable, here and beyond.

But today we are really talking about a pumpkin-maple syrup synergy. Maple syrup is a fantastic sweetener and can often be used instead of refined white sugar. Unlike sugar, maple syrup has a significant number of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that can contribute to meeting daily nutrient requirements. Pure maple syrup has on average in 4 tablespoons serving size, more than 100% of our daily intake of manganese, 37% of riboflavin, 18% of zinc, 7% of magnesium, 5% of calcium, and 5% of potassium.

Pure maple syrup is a single, natural product produced by the concentration of sap from the maple tree. It is a natural sweetener that contains no added sugar, coloring agents, artificial flavorings, preservatives or other additives. Its simplicity allows us to include it in our recipes without fear of artificial additives that you normally encounter in corn- based syrups, for example.

Therefore, when a little sweetness is called for, choosing how you achieve the perfect taste makes all the difference. When developing our recipes, we will often use honey, another powerful sweetener with a long list of benefits (See this blog post), but at times, the better recipe match is maple syrup. These No-Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake Bites combine ease of preparation with all the flavors of sumptuous autumn. The unique flavor of pecans in the crust blend and enhance the tones of pumpkin and maple in the cheesecake, delivering a clean and guilt-free dessert to enjoy anytime!

No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake Bites

Crust

1 cup of pecan meal

1 cup of dates

Cheesecake

½ cup of Once Again Creamy Cashew Butter

4 of ounces of cream cheese (or cream cheese substitute if vegan)

½ cup of maple syrup

2 tablespoons of pumpkin spice

1 cup of pumpkin puree

Start by adding dates to a bowl with warm water for 5-15 minutes to soften. Then add them to food processor, and pulse until dates form a dough-like ball. Add in pecan meal, and pulse again. For the filling, in separate bowl, start with Once Again Cashew Butter; add in cream cheese, maple syrup, and pumpkin spice, and mix well. It is much easier to mix if the cream cheese is at room temperature. To prepare the cheesecake bites, use one tablespoon of crust and press to form in a muffin pan. Then add filling up to the top of each muffin crust. Place the pan in the freezer for 1 hour and then move it to the refrigerator for 30 minutes prior to serving. Store extras in freezer for up to 30 days.

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Our melting pot of cultures that makes up our diverse country allows us to bring an array of exotic foods and spices from lands far away right into our kitchens. In India, millions have enjoyed masala chai for many generations. Masala chai has made its way into our coffee and tea shops and is commonly sold in grocery stores to make at home. It is a spiced, sweetened black tea mixed with milk, by the classical Indian definition. It is sold in India by chai wallahs, or tea vendors, who pour this aromatic tea from big iron kettles into small cups. Americans have incorrectly shortened to just “chai”, which is not necessarily correct since the word chai alone simply means “milk tea.” “Masala” refers to the unique combination of spices that our taste buds adore. Masala spices often include cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, pepper, fennel, and star anise.

Masala can also be a fantastic match for nuts and seeds. The combination of this earthy aromatic spice blend highlights the nutty taste of almonds, peanuts, cashews and other nuts and seeds, perfectly. Since we like to focus on cooking with a purpose around here, let’s not forget to mention how this blend of spices delivers many health benefits. Cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cloves each have unique nutritive value and have each been studied and linked to various ways they can impact our health. A common theme is their ability to help our body fight off inflammation. Another is their ability to help our metabolism stabilize blood sugar levels.

The recipe below combines masala spices, honey, seeds, raw nuts and our Once Again Almond Butter into a bite sized portions that you can enjoy just about any time of the day. They are hearty enough to be a part of your breakfast and help you stay satiated until your next meal. They can also be deliciously paired with a cup of hot tea for an afternoon snack —or perhaps they can work too for you as a post- workout snack to replenish lost energy stores and kick start muscle healing, helping you avoid excessive inflammation. Regardless of when you choose to eat them, they are phenomenal, and you might just find yourself making them week after week. Feel free to share this recipe with friends and adapt it to include your favorite nuts, seeds, or dried fruits!

Masala Nuts and Seeds Cups

½ cup of raw cashews

½ cup of roasted sunflower seeds

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

½ teaspoon of powdered ginger

¼ teaspoon of ground cardamom

½ cup of shredded unsweetened coconut

¼ cup of currants

2 tablespoons of Once Again Creamy Almond Butter

2 tablespoons of honey

¼ cup applesauce

1 tablespoon of ground flaxseeds

Add all ingredients to a food processor, except for the currants. Once well mixed (do not over process), add in the currants and mix again. Then distribute the mixture evenly among 12 mini-muffin cups and refrigerate to set. You may place the bites in the freezer for 20 minutes for quicker results. Keep these delights in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

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A new food trend has taken over Instagram and Facebook feeds in the last few months, leaving many of us drooling over photos of delicious spoonsful of nothing less than cookie dough! That’s right! What was once deemed unsafe to be consumed raw, now comes in a variety of flavors, and the recipes are simple to follow.

Technically, the one ingredient that has made raw cookie dough a health risk to consume comes to us by the dozens, eggs! However, simply removing eggs from your average cookie recipe doesn’t quite do the trick. The FDA warns that plain white flour isn’t recommended for raw consumption either, due to possible contaminants. Many cookie recipes also call for some type of vegetable oil, which if consumed raw can have an awkward aftertaste and texture. Thus, a multi-level challenge emerges for us.

After briefly researching edible cookie dough recipes and some experimenting in our kitchen, we have come up with a knock-out recipe of our own. Perhaps the best part of the whole adventure was the experimenting! Each failed recipe became a reason to eat the rejects and start over again. When you are using ingredients such as whole grain oats, dark chocolate, and our Once Again nut and seed butters, eating up the failed attempts is a delicious job that needs to be taken care of, well, lickety-split!

As usual, we strive to include good sources of nutrients in all our recipes. Even our treats fit safely into a healthy lifestyle. That’s the goal, after all! This explains why we chose whole oat flour as our starch in this particular recipe. Due to the natural sweetness of peanuts, our Once Again Peanut Butter was the best match for this cookie dough. However, we have tried the recipe with Once Again Almond Butter, and it was just as amazing.
Pumpkin is in the air as we approach the fall season, so why not add pumpkin puree to this recipe as well as many others? Just one tablespoon of maple syrup sufficed to sweeten the whole batch. The dark chocolate is completely optional here, and you can be substitute coconut, dried fruits, or chopped nuts. However, in my opinion, the dark chocolate works phenomenally to balance the pumpkin and peanut butter flavors in this unique edible cookie dough. Did we mention that it takes literally fewer than 5 minutes to make this? Watch our video, and whip up some for yourself, too!

Pumpkin Cookie Dough

2 tablespoons of pumpkin puree

2 tablespoons of Once Again Peanut Butter

1 tablespoon of maple syrup

¼ cup of oat flour

1 teaspoon of pumpkin spice

¼ cup of chopped dark chocolate

Start with the pumpkin puree, and mix in Once Again Peanut Butter. Once well blended, add in maple syrup, and then slowly mix in the oat flour. Add in pumpkin spice and dark chocolate chips, and mix well. Enjoy the result with a spoon, or roll it into cookie dough balls. Store in refrigerator for up to 5 days. Makes about 8 teaspoons of cookie dough.

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When it comes to breakfast cereals, choosing a healthy option is easier said than done. It is obvious that Americans love cereal; one must simply stroll down to the nearest grocery store to notice entire aisles dedicated to cereals. Cereal is indeed a delicious way to start your day! However, if choosing the wrong kind, you could be compromising your nutritional goals in just one bowl before the day even starts properly. Nutritionists and health experts agree that when it comes to breakfast cereals, the most overdone ingredient is sugar. Most of options on the market have excessive sugar and lack substantial macronutrients needed to start your metabolic processes in the early hours of the day. Fiber and protein are often neglected to make room for ingredients such as high corn fructose syrup and white flour, which deliver a tasty treat instead of a nutrient-packed breakfast. There are exceptions, and thankfully you can find some phenomenal cereals nowadays. However, picking which one is right for you will require a process a bit like a treasure hunt.

You’ll need basic knowledge of how to read nutrition labels as well as how to decipher ingredient lists and be ready to spend a good 30 minutes flipping boxes around at the store shelves. The bright colors and big bold letters on the front of the boxes are catchy but hide the actual contents inside. Distinguishing between marketing and evidenced-based claims can be quite tricky.

We don’t want to discourage you from finding the perfect breakfast cereal for you and your family, but in the meantime, or occasionally, you could make your own at home! It is surprisingly simple, requiring only 6 ingredients and about 20 minutes in the oven.

You will need Once Again Creamy Almond Butter or your favorite Once Again Nut or Seed Butter, a little maple syrup and oat flour. In just one bowl you can mix all ingredients together and you are ready to roll. If you have little helpers hanging around the kitchen with you, let them handle the rolling out of the dough! They are experts in playing with modeling clay and dough after all. Creating long snakes that you can snip to make pillow-shaped cereal is a fun project for all.

Not a big breakfast cereal person? Don’t dismiss this recipe so quickly! These Almond Puffs are perfect for snacking too. Just fill up an air tight container and pack it along with you for the day — when hunger strikes, you can munch on it for a satisfyingly and crunchy, nutrient-filled snack that won’t compromise your health goals for the day.

Almond Puffs Cereal

1 egg

½ cup of Once Again Creamy Almond Butter

¼ cup of maple syrup

1 cup of oat flour

1 teaspoon of baking powder

½ teaspoon of vanilla extract

Whisk egg, and then mix it into the almond butter. Add in maple syrup and slowly blend in flour. Mix in baking powder and vanilla extract. Roll out dough into long rope and cut ½ inch pieces with a dinner knife. This type of knife will create little pillow shapes versus cylinders. Place them on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat, or sprayed with non-stick spray and bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Turn them halfway to bake evenly. Store in airtight container for up to one week. Serve with the milk of your choice!

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What is sweet, and what is salty? This simple question can yield a wide variety of answers depending upon whom you ask. How you perceive sweet, sour, bitter, or salty depends upon both your genetics and other factors you have been exposed to. There are talented individuals that educate their palates to distinguish between numerous subtle tastes beyond just those for primary tastes we tend to use to describe what we eat. Can you imagine taking a bite of a risotto for example and being able to list each ingredient precisely simply through taste? Regardless of how intricate you can describe your taste sensations, it is something you’ve developed over the years. A child who has never tasted a lemon for example, may think that an orange tastes sour. Once that children awaken and expand their palates, they can better classify different food tastes.

So, why are we discussing taste palate ranges you may wonder? Today we are sharing a recipe for bonbons. Bonbons, a word of French origin, is defined by Webster’s dictionary as a candy with chocolate or fondant coating and fondant center that sometimes contains fruits and nuts. The expectation when you bite into a bonbon is one of sweetness. However, for a more educated palate, the desired experience just may include a nutty taste combined with some slight bitterness of cacao and a sweet undertone that gives your tongue an exuberant panoply of flavors. That experience sounds much more satisfying than simply splurging through a barrage of sugar. Therefore, our recipe will highlight the coconut, cacao and almonds versus the sugar. We suggest you re-define your senses s bit prior to indulging in this treat, perhaps by drinking a glass of water and/or eating a saltine cracker, just as professional taste testers often do as part of their preparational rituals. This will allow you to clear your mind from prior expectations and allow your brain to create new connections as you taste each flavor separately and then in symphony as they are so well combined in this bonbon.

Through practicing this sequence often, you will be slowly educating your taste palate to require less sugar to define something as “sweet.” If you haven’t deciphered the health benefits yet for this practice, here is it in plain words: You will eat less refined sugar and still enjoy what you eat!

Our recipe for Coconut Almond Bonbons uses maple syrup as a sweetener, but only 3 tablespoons. This moderation is what gives the other ingredients a chance to shine through individually. It is also a vegan and gluten-free recipe. You can easily substitute the Once Again Almond Butter with cashew, peanut butter, sunflower seed butter or even tahini, if you would like to experiment. Each one will give you a completely different bonbon. For a party or event, consider making a few with each different nut or seed butter and then using different sprinkled toppings to decorate them. When you make these, please share a picture your creations with us on social media and tag us @onceagainnutbutter. We love sharing your results with our community.

Coconut Almond Bonbons

¼ cup of Once Again Almond Butter

¼ cup of coconut flour

3 tablespoons of coconut oil

3 tablespoons of maple syrup

2 tablespoons of cacao powder

Mix Once Again Almond Butter and coconut flour, place it in molds, or roll it into small balls. Now mix coconut oil, syrup and cacao powder. Dip each one into chocolate mix, or pour mixture in molds. Place bonbons in the freezer for 45 minutes, allowing them to set. Remove bonbons from the freezer for 5 minutes before enjoying them. Store them in the freezer in an airtight container for up to one week.

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Summertime and ice-cold lemonade go together like hot dogs on 4th of July! As we enter warm season, our taste buds gravitate toward citrus and berries, barbecues, and frozen treats. At the same time, lemons become a more frequent addition to our dishes during these sultry months of the year. Perhaps our bodies just know how much we need the extra fluid, electrolytes and vitamin C, which are all present in citrus. This may explain our cravings for such tangy-sweet flavors.

You can substitute lemons for limes and vice versa, as your imagination commands. They are both very acidic but have pleasantly different tastes and aromas. As a matter of fact, most people can discern the distinct scents of lemon or lime while blindfolded. Fragrance aside, lemons have a slightly higher content of vitamin C when compared to limes.

When using these jewels of nutrition as ingredients in recipes they behave alike but provide distinct flavor results. For example, when looking to boost a sweet tang, lemons may work best; however, if the objective is to dull down a bit the sugar in a recipe, limes will be a better fit.

Our Lemon Cashew Bars recipe was originally created with lemons, but recently tested using limes instead, and the results were just as delicious! The Lemon Cashew Bars are slightly less sweet- tasting than the ones prepared with limes when nothing else was modified. These bars are so easy to make, allowing you to stock up your refrigerator all summer long. That way you won’t be caught without a healthy snack anytime during your busiest days, and they can also be conveniently and neatly away for a picnic or car trip. You may find similar bars on grocery store shelves, but don’t be if surprised your homemade versions taste so much better! The secret is in the citrus zest, and of course, the top-quality ingredients you use at home. Just 4 ingredients, a food processor and your refrigerator— that’s all you’ll need! Let us know which homemade version you prefer, the lime or lemon? We are ready to experiment with orange and grapefruit as well. What do you think?

Lemon Cashew Bars

¾ cup of dates

2 tablespoons of lemon juice

Zest of one lemon

½ cup of Once Again Cashew Butter

½ cup of raw cashews

Using a food processor, start by combining the dates and lemon juice. Pulse until you achieve a homogeneous mixture. Then add the cashew butter and cashews. Lastly, add in the lemon zest. Place mixture in a baking pan about 4 x 8 inches in diameter, lined with parchment paper. Set in refrigerator for 4 hours, or for just 1 hour in freezer. Cut into bars and store in airtight container in refrigerator for up to 10 days.

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If you told me a few months back that I would be dedicating a whole blog to cottage cheese, I would have had a hard time believing you. However, our readers keep coming back for our healthy recipes, while remaining in constant search of delicious ways to meet their diverse nutritional needs.

Now let’s talk about our passion, that is, bringing you the best combinations of ingredients to meet all of your dietary requirements while also giving you recipes that taste great, of course. Although many of you may be vegan or vegetarian, we also want to bring options to those who aren’t. This is what led me to further explore the possibilities of cottage cheese.

A sadly forgotten ingredient in my kitchen was recently brought back into to the light when on a grocery trip I spotted it on sale. Upon picking up the small container of cottage cheese, I analyzed the label and was reminded of how much protein cottage cheese has packed into such small caloric content. One cup of low fat cottage cheese has 28 grams of protein and just 163 calories. It is also crammed with many nutrients like B vitamins, calcium, phosphorus, and selenium. But the highlight of this this nutritional powerhouse’s profile is the fact that over 70% of cottage cheese’s calories derive from protein. That makes these humble curds an excellent source of protein, and a convenient food choice for athletes, people on the move, and those requiring a bit of extra protein each day.

Perhaps the last time you had cottage cheese was at your school cafeteria when it was served with a side of some sort of soggy fruit. Bleck! If you then designated cottage cheese as a food you would rather not eat, think again! Cottage cheese can be transformed and used as an ingredient in an array of decidedly different, delicious ways. It can be added to smoothies just as a protein supplement would be. And as a bonus, cottage cheese has a velvet-like consistency when blended that can achieve the creaminess that you are looking for in your drinks. Plain cottage cheese has a very mild flavor, unlike that of most cheeses; therefore, it can easily absorb the flavors that it is paired with.

It also can be blended and added to soups as a thickener to build extra protein content in the recipe. You can use it in place of Feta or blue cheese in your salads, add it to pancake batter, your favorite lasagna recipe, or even splurge some through your granola in the morning.

For some time, cottage cheese has been a popular choice amongst those looking to build muscle mass due to its high casein content. Casein accounts for 80% of the protein in cottage cheese, and it is a slowly absorbed protein. This allows for better muscle building, as well as prolonged absorption of the amino acid leucine, which also increases muscle building capacity.

Potentially the only thing missing from low fat cottage cheese is a healthy dose of monounsaturated fatty acids and omegas found in almond butter, for example! To fill this gap, we have created a perfectly delicious solution. Blending almond butter with cottage cheese to create a chocolate mousse will change the way you’ll think about night- time snacking. Since its protein is so slowly absorbed, cottage cheese is effective in preventing muscle breakdown that may occur at night. Therefore, a serving of our High Protein Chocolate Mousse is just what you may need before you embark upon a night of restful sleep.

The creaminess of the cottage cheese, enhanced by the richness of the almond butter, is matched with the depth of cacao powder to make this chocolate mousse irresistible! Feel free to top it with some fresh fruit and drizzle on a little extra almond butter for some genuine crowning glory.

High Protein Chocolate Mousse

½ cup of cottage cheese

2 tablespoons of Once Again Almond Butter

1 teaspoon of cacao powder

1 packet of stevia (or 1 tablespoon of honey or coconut sugar)

Add all ingredients to blender and pulse until smooth. Place in refrigerator to set for 30 minutes and enjoy! The total protein for this one-portion serving is about 17 grams.

Healthy baking substitutions have become a popular way to continue to enjoy some of our favorite treats without feeling guilty! Among a variety of popular ingredient substitutions, removing eggs and adding apple sauce is a commonly used trick for those watching total calorie and fat in their diet. Have you ever wondered why that works? Or perhaps if it always works?

Using eggs in a baking recipe usually serves two main purposes. One is to add moisture, the other is to develop a desired consistency. Both of these outcomes can be achieved with applesauce. There are a few rules, however. To ensure a successful baking experience. When a cake recipe has a leavening agent such as baking powder, the eggs will add the moisture needed as the cake rises while baking. Applesauce can function in the same way in these recipes, and you can substitute ¼ cup of it for each egg in the recipe. Also adjust the baking powder up by 25-30% more and bake for just a few minutes longer, checking the cake with a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake before removing it from the oven.

For cookie recipes, the more appropriate substitution is for 1/3 cup of applesauce per egg. In this case, you may also use a sweetened applesauce and decrease the amount of refined white sugar the recipe requires. The ideal times to use this substitution is for when the recipe has another source of moisture and fat in the recipe. For example, a recipe that calls for oil and eggs is a perfect candidate for apple sauce substitution. If the only source of moisture is the eggs, consider starting out by just substituting half the amount of eggs for applesauce.

As you can see below, in the recipe for Baked Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars, there are no eggs, instead we used applesauce. However, notice the additional fat source in the recipe is peanut butter which allows for this substitution to yield a perfectly baked treat! It makes it possible for those following a vegan or more plant-based diet to bake without compromising when it comes to flavor. This recipe is a gluten-free (use gluten-free certified oats) and vegetarian with a vegan option, if you use maple syrup instead of the honey.

These bars are not very sweet. They rely on the jelly or jam you choose to use as a topping. Alternatively, you could double up on the honey or vegan sweetener and increase the oat flour to ¾ cup, if you desire a sweeter desert version versus a less sugary breakfast bar.

Once Again Nut Butter’s variety of products helps you stay in control of what you eat by offering you no salt, and unsweetened varieties for each of our nut and seed butters. When baking, choose which one you prefer and adjust the other ingredients in your recipe accordingly! The difference between eating pre-packaged cookies and homemade cookies is quantum, amounting to the ability to choose quality ingredients and keep your recipes clean, that is, free of additives. Once Again Nut Butter products were designed with rare marketplace ideals in mind. Minimal, highest quality ingredients allow each nut or seed flavor to really shine through no matter how you use the butters!

In a large mixing bowl, combine oat flour, oats and baking powder. In a separate medium bowl, mix honey, applesauce, peanut butter and milk. Then combine wet ingredients into dry, mixing well. Pour into baking pan, about 7 by 11 inches in size, prepared with coconut oil non-stick spray. Lastly, spread the ½ cup of preserve or jam as a thin layer on top. Place in a preheated oven at 350 Fahrenheit for 30 minutes or until edges are lightly golden. Remove the baked result from the oven, and once cooled, cut it into bars or squares and store in an airtight container for up to 3 days. These bars are best stored in refrigerator.